Chronon critical pointswww.chronon.org
A selection of scientific applets, articles and book reviews,
in particular questioning some of the claims that are often made in popular science books, but which aren't supported by the scienceen-gbStephen LeeReview of 'Leibniz' by Nicholas JolleyTue, 3 Jul 2012 12:25:08 GMTLeibniz Nicholas Jolley gives an introduction to the main points of Leibniz philosophy.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Leibniz.html
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The information diet' by Clay JohnsonWed, 13 Jun 2012 17:16:11 GMTThe Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Consumption Clay Johnson claims that we're getting junk information, and just as in the case of food, we need to be careful to consume the information we need.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/The_information_diet.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'Plight of the fortune tellers' by Riccardo RebonatoTue, 12 Jun 2012 11:00:07 GMTPlight of the Fortune Tellers: Why We Need to Manage Financial Risk Differently Riccardo Rebonato gives his explanation.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Plight_of_the_fortune_tellers.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The construction of the heavens' by Michael HoskinThu, 7 Jun 2012 11:54:17 GMTThe Construction of the Heavens: William Herschel's Cosmology Michael Hoskin tells of Herschel's contribution.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/The_construction_of_the_heavens.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Letters to a Young Mathematician' by Ian StewartThu, 24 May 2012 08:14:51 GMTLetters to a Young Mathematician Ian Stewart tells readers what he would like to have known when he was younger, in the form of letters to a budding mathematician, Meg.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Letters_to_a_Young_Mathematician.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'How the laser happened' by Charles TownesWed, 23 May 2012 15:12:47 GMTHow the Laser Happened: Adventures of a Scientist Charles Townes tells the story.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/How_the_laser_happened.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'How the hippies saved physics' by David KaiserThu, 17 May 2012 13:04:57 GMTth Century, thinking about the meaning of quantum theory was strongly discouraged - physicists were supposed to work on practical applications (like bombs). But eventually people started to question this stance and delve into what quantum theory meant and how it was linked to other aspects of life. In How the Hippies Saved Physics: Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival David Kaiser tells the story.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/How_the_hippies_saved_physics.html
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'How not to be eaten' by Gilbert WaldbauerTue, 15 May 2012 11:35:24 GMTHow not to be eaten : the insects fight back Gilbert Waldbauer tells of the strategies insects use to avoid this.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/How_not_to_be_eaten.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Economics of good and evil' by Tomas SedlacekTue, 8 May 2012 12:36:03 GMTEconomics of Good and Evil: The Quest for Economic Meaning from Gilgamesh to Wall Street Tomas Sedlacek finds economic concepts in a wide variety of sources - from ancient myths to the mathematical theories of today.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Economics_of_good_and_evil.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'Reinventing discovery' by Michael A NielsenFri, 27 Apr 2012 12:38:38 GMTReinventing Discovery: The New Era of Networked Science Michael A Nielsen explains how the internet is changing the way science can be done and calls for us to adopt these changes as soon as we can.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Reinventing_discovery.html
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Nine algorithms that changed the future' by John MacCormickWed, 25 Apr 2012 16:33:37 GMT9 Algorithms That Changed the Future: The Ingenious Ideas That Drive Today's Computers John MacCormick sets out to give readers an inkling of the workings of the algorithms driving todays computers and the internet, without requiring prior knowledge of programming or computer science.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Nine_algorithms_that_changed_the_future.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Chaucer' by Peter AckroydTue, 24 Apr 2012 10:49:59 GMTCanterbury Tales, but there was much more to him than that, not just the poetry he wrote, but also the important work he did in the service of the King. In Chaucer (part of the Brief Lives series) Peter Ackroyd tells of his life.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Chaucer.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The House of Wisdom' by Jonathan LyonsMon, 23 Apr 2012 13:11:17 GMT The House of Wisdom: How the Arabs Transformed Western Civilization Jonathan Lyons explains how much medieval Christendom gained from Arabic learning.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/The_House_of_Wisdom.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The man of numbers' by Keith DevlinThu, 12 Apr 2012 16:38:25 GMTThe Man of Numbers: Fibonacci's Arithmetic Revolution Keith Devlin shows that he actually played a significant part in introducing the arithmetic we use today to the Western world.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/The_man_of_numbers.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Seeing Further' by Bill BrysonWed, 11 Apr 2012 12:28:58 GMTSeeing Further: The Story of Science and the Royal Society is a collection of short articles on a wide range of scientific topics, reflecting the range of interests of the Royal Society over its 350 year history. The articles are written by well known science writers, with editor Bill Bryson]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Seeing_Further.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Knocking on heaven's door' by Lisa RandallTue, 10 Apr 2012 15:55:50 GMTKnocking on heaven's door: how physics and scientific thinking illuminate the universe and the modern world Lisa Randall looks at the place of science in society, and in particular at what some of the large scale experiments are aiming to achieve.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Knocking_on_heaven's_door.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Green philosophy' by Roger ScrutonSat, 10 Mar 2012 11:43:55 GMTGreen Philosophy: How to Think Seriously About the Planet Roger Scruton presents his views on how to deal with environmental, and other, problems which we are faced with.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Green_philosophy.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The necessary revolution' by Peter SengeThu, 8 Mar 2012 10:03:37 GMTThe necessary revolution: how individuals and organizations are working together to create a sustainable world Peter Senge shows that businesses shouldn't see the practice of sustainability as a public relations cost, but rather as vital to their staying in business in the decades ahead.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/The_necessary_revolution.html
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'Join the club' by Tina RosenbergMon, 5 Mar 2012 12:04:00 GMTJoin the club: how peer pressure can transform the world Tina Rosenberg shows just how strong peer pressure can be, but also how it can be used to guide people in a positive way.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Join_the_club.html
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'Two Sides of the Moon' by David Scott and Alexei LeonovMon, 27 Feb 2012 07:23:56 GMTTwo Sides of the Moon: Our Story of the Cold War Space Race Astronaut David Scott and Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov tell of their involvement in the space programs aimed at moon landings.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/Two_Sides_of_the_Moon.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'Portuguese irregular verbs' by Alexander McCall SmithWed, 22 Feb 2012 10:13:22 GMTPortuguese irregular verbs is Alexander McCall Smith's story of Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, a German professor of philology, and of the mishaps he and his colleagues encounter in their lives.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/Portuguese_irregular_verbs.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The Perfumier and the Stinkhorn' by Richard MabeyTue, 21 Feb 2012 10:15:44 GMTThe Perfumier and the Stinkhorn by Richard Mabey is a collection of short essays based on the BBC Radio 3 broadcasts The Scientist and the Romantic]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/The_Perfumier_and_the_Stinkhorn.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book ReviewReview of 'How is the Internet changing the way you think' by John BrockmanThu, 9 Feb 2012 10:09:51 GMTHow is the Internet changing the way you think?: the net's impact on our minds and future edited by John Brockman gives the responses of 154 of the Edge thinkers.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/How_is_the_Internet_changing_the_way_you_think.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'The prodigal tongue' by Mark AbleyTue, 31 Jan 2012 12:33:04 GMTThe Prodigal Tongue: Dispatches From The Future of English Mark Abley looks at such issues.]]>http://www.CriticalPoints.org/The_prodigal_tongue.php
reviews@chronon.orgBook ReviewReview of 'From eternity to here' by Sean M CarrollThu, 26 Jan 2012 09:38:15 GMTFrom eternity to here: the quest for the ultimate theory of time Sean M Carroll examines some of the problems related to time and the universe and discusses their possible resolutions.]]>http://www.chronon.org/Science/From_eternity_to_here.php
reviews@chronon.orgScience Book Review